The MidMorning After
by Cam2
Summary: Sequel to "She Didn't." Chloe/Lex


Title: The Mid-Morning After  
  
Author: Cam  
  
Author's email: Camerada2006@yahoo.com  
  
Pairing: Chloe/Lex  
  
Spoilers: All, none, it really doesn't matter, since this is a way-in-the-future-fic.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own these characters. Hence, no profit.  
  
Summary: Sequel to "She Didn't." It would absolutely help if you read that story. You might be able to get this one without reading it, but I wouldn't recommend it . . . :-D  
  
A/N: This is dedicated to everyone who reviewed "She Didn't." You guys are the reason why I wrote this. And as always, feedback is greatly appreciated!  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Lex Luthor was mature.  
  
Really.  
  
Although, he supposed, based on his present appearance, the casual observer might fail to note this fact. As it was, he was sitting on the only piece of furniture in a rather sparse apartment, eating dry cereal and watching cartoons.   
  
This, funny enough, was the last thing he'd expected when he left his penthouse the previous evening to pick up model-of-the-moment Sidney Seville.  
  
Lex had planned to have dinner with Sid, attend an auction to help some poor unfortunate souls, and end the night with a few rounds of "athletic activity" with the aforementioned model.  
  
But then, Chloe Sullivan appeared. She was dining with one of his classmates from Princeton. Boulder Mason. "Freaking idiot" were the words that always accompanied the name and Lex considered himself lucky, since he'd stopped himself every time he came close to saying them.  
  
Ah, Chloe. She was sitting there, looking downright beautiful. He'd been vaguely aware of it back in Smallville, but there was maturity in her now that had been lacking before. Lex found himself comparing her to Sid.  
  
Sitting on the floor of Chloe's apartment, he went over a mental list of attributes. Chloe: lovely, funny, talented, warm, exciting, strong. Sidney: tall.   
  
Actually, and Lex had to admit it, Sidney was preternaturally pretty. Sort of like Lana – minus the whole having-a-soul thing.  
  
At the restaurant, they had dinner together. Lex made sure he sat next to Chloe, and then nearly laughed aloud at his schoolboy eagerness. He observed her covertly, and discovered something new. She drank a lot of water. She took at least two sips between every bite. He almost commented on it, but decided to hold back for fear of Sid making a comment like "it hasn't done much for your skin." Not that her skin was flawed. On the contrary, there wasn't a single blemish, just a mole here or there that Lex wanted to taste.  
  
And here was the point. He was attracted to Chloe. This attraction increased when they stood outside protected from the sudden rain under the cover of the restaurant. She made a comment about enjoying his company.  
  
Her exact words had been: "The company was memorable."  
  
Of course, as a bred in the bone Luthor, Lex didn't let on to how her words had pleased him. He honestly couldn't remember the last time someone had told him they'd liked spending time with him. Then again, he supposed that sex was a way of saying this . . . but it just wasn't the same as Saying It.  
  
"What are you watching?" Chloe appeared, wearing a pair of jeans and a tight white shirt half- hidden by a large plaid number. Chloe, freshly scrubbed, hair damp, and Lex could swear he smelled freesia wafting toward him.  
  
"It doesn't seem like Yogi's going to make it out of this one," he said, smoothly, glancing at Chloe – well, to be honest, her chest. "There must be some choice ingredients in that picnic basket."  
  
"Yeah, meth or something." Chloe said, taking a seat next to him on the well-worn couch.  
  
Lex laughed. "You know, that would explain a lot."  
  
Yes, it was freesia.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
They had eaten cheesecake the night before. Even though he wanted the slice topped with blueberries, and Luthors always got what they wanted, Chloe made him get the caramel covered one. Well, really, she only pouted when he said no the first time. But it was sufficient.  
  
Before he knew it, they were ensconced in a booth, and Chloe was talking.  
  
She told him about college, and how much she'd loved and hated it at the same time. She talked about the level of competition that she almost couldn't accept. EVERYONE wanted to be the star reporter. He smiled when she said she didn't care about being the star reporter, she just wanted to be editor-in-chief.  
  
And then she laughed, and asked what he'd been doing for the last four years.  
  
He started to give her the typical PR speech about the many acquisitions he'd made and how LexCorp was flourishing and how he was richer now than his father and how . . .   
  
But when he looked into her eyes, so much quieter and subdued, he thought that maybe she Really Did Care about what he'd been doing.  
  
He ended up diverting the conversation to the cheesecake (which was really good). But the look in her eyes was not lost on him, and he knew that she knew he was not saying something.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
"Hungry?" Present Chloe asked. "I have more than just cereal, Lex."  
  
"Huh?" He looked into the empty bowl absently. "Um . . ."  
  
"Or we can go out." She looked at him, curious. "What are you thinking about?"  
  
"Yogi and Boo-Boo; did you ever get a feeling that there were homosexual undertones?"  
  
Chloe laughed aloud, a sound akin to bells. "You've thought way too hard about this, Lex."  
  
Suddenly he had to know. "Is that Clark's?" As soon as the words fell from his mouth, Lex tried to take them back. "I mean-"  
  
"Yeah, we dated for a few months back in sophomore year," she tugged at the hem of the red and blue plaid shirt, inspecting it. "I have a few of these."  
  
Lex was silent. He knew Chloe and Clark had dated. He knew it ended very badly, with a lot of resentment and anger on both sides. He knew that Clark hadn't so much as mentioned Chloe's name in two years, and on some level, he knew that it was very, very wrong for him to be here.  
  
"I should get going," he said finally.  
  
"Yeah, I guess so," Chloe said, pulling her knees up to her chin.   
  
Lex watched as she retreated into herself, remembering how open she'd been with him the night before.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
He had walked her to her apartment, and kissed the corner of her mouth when they reached the door. She moaned so softly, Lex could barely hear it, but he knew it was something he could never again live without.   
  
That kiss turned into something warm and right and perfect. Somehow, Chloe managed to unlock the door, and it gave way to a tiny apartment. He briefly looked around before returning to the matter at hand. Long, sucking, wet kisses. They fell onto the couch, touching and tasting, and soon Lex was licking her like a puppy because he simply couldn't get enough.  
  
Then she began to giggle, and that stopped him short. He sat up and looked at her laughing form, until she began to gasp for air. He leaned forward and gently patted her on the back.  
  
"Lex!" Her eyes were wide. "You were licking me."  
  
"My apologies."  
  
"Well," she smiled a little, "it's ok . . . I guess. Just a little weird."  
  
Lex looked at her silently, wondering whether or not he should just get the hell out of there and if he'd see a headline in the morning paper reading: "Sexy Lexy Licks Local Woman."  
  
"Wanna watch TV?" Chloe was suddenly on the floor digging under the couch.  
  
"What are you doing?" He bent down only to get a mouthful of hair as she surfaced.  
  
"Remote," she said triumphantly. "Here, you pick. I'm going to change."  
  
She left, and Lex was left to find an appropriate channel to watch. He hardly ever had time to watch television; needless to say, he was mesmerized by the travesty that was the Jerry Springer Show.  
  
In an effort to avoid analyzing what had just happened, Lex studied the television carefully. In a few moments, he managed to discern this episode's theme. When Chloe returned, he was fully engrossed.  
  
"Hey," she said, and Lex wondered what she was REALLY trying to say. Seriously. Her pajamas had cherries on them, for goodness' sake. Or maybe he was overanalyzing. Again.  
  
"This man is trying to explain to his girlfriend that he's in love with her father," he said. "I think."  
  
"Does the father love him back?" Chloe asked, taking a seat beside him, and slipping beneath his arm.  
  
Surprised, Lex hesitated, before gently pulling her closer. "That's what it looks like."  
  
"Well," Chloe said softly, "that's all that matters." She looked up at him, and again, Lex saw a tenderness he'd never noticed before.  
  
At this point, he switched off the television. He managed to maneuver so that he was stretched out on the couch, and she was on top of him, looking down into his eyes.  
  
"I had fun tonight, Chloe," he said, watching her lips slide upward into an easy smile.  
  
"So did I," and he smelled mint.  
  
She lowered her head to kiss him, and he closed his eyes, accepting it, moving into it. His hand traveled up her back and beneath her shirt, firmly stroking in a rhythm that kept pace with his tongue. He tasted mint.  
  
"Lex," she murmured.  
  
"Yeah, Chlo?" He said against her mouth.  
  
"Can we just," she sighed, "can we just do this?"  
  
There was an innocence in her request that made him feel a wave of unworthiness, made him nearly beg her forgiveness and leave. Made him nearly call Clark to confess. But he didn't, because she was burying her face in his neck, and damn, but she smelled good, and tasted even better.  
  
Lex held her until they fell asleep, and even then one hand stayed on her back, and the other was hooked in the waistband of her pajama pants.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
But now, Chloe was completely wrapped up in the corner of the couch, and Lex couldn't reach her. He bent to pick up his Armani duster which had fallen to the floor the previous night. He glanced at her, unsure of what to say.  
  
"Goodbye, Chloe," Lex turned to the door, and began walking.  
  
"'Bye, Lex," she stared straight at the television.  
  
One more step, and he'd be out of there. One more step. One more step he couldn't seem to take.  
  
Lex sighed. "Chloe?"  
  
"Yes, Lex?"  
  
He practically pirouetted. "Chloe, it's never been quite so hard for me to walk out of a room before. Especially one so badly decorated as this."  
  
"Hey!" Chloe was indignant, then reconsidered. "It's industrial."  
  
"Whatever. Anyway, it's not the room that's preventing me from leaving – it's you."  
  
Chloe stood. "What are you saying?"  
  
He paused before walking to her. "I imagine it has to do with not wanting to be alone."  
  
"That's not terribly romantic, Lex," Chloe smiled a little, but Lex could tell she was confused.  
  
"On the contrary, Chloe, it's quite romantic when you think about it." He was standing before her, looking down at the adorably puzzled expression on her face. Lex bent to brush his lips against her cheek while murmuring, "Quite."  
  
Chloe pulled away, and Lex felt a pang of something (loneliness?) and looked down at the bare sub-flooring of the apartment.  
  
"How so?" She crossed her arms.  
  
"Before seeing you last night, I'd never disliked the idea of being alone, Chloe," Lex said. "I've dated lots of women, but I could never see myself spending a long period of time with any of them. I guess because any semblance of a relationship was rather forced – a preliminary to the inevitable."  
  
"The inevitable?" Chloe frowned, then her eyes widened. "Oh, you mean sex."  
  
"Yes," Lex rushed on to the next sentence. "Spending this time with you has been relaxing, and more amazing than that, it was fun."  
  
"Thank you," she said, and Lex thought she sounded a bit uncertain.   
  
"I don't have a lot of fun in my life, Chlo. Very little, actually. At least back in Smallville, I had you guys to keep me excited about something, even if it was the Wall of Weird." He smiled slightly at some long-forgotten memory.  
  
"You still have Clark," she said suddenly, or at least it sounded sudden. Lex realized he should have been expecting her to say something like that.  
  
Lex sighed, frustrated. "Chloe, we seem to be talking at cross purposes. You're obviously not interested in what I'm trying to say, so I'm really going to leave this time." He strode toward the door.  
  
"Lex!" And she flung herself on top of him. "Please don't go – I'm just so confused."  
  
There were tears in her eyes.  
  
"What is it?" Lex pulled her to him.  
  
"Clark called me a few days ago," Chloe said softly. "He wanted to see me – to get back together. He said he missed me and he loved me and he wanted to be with me. I told him I'd call him back, Lex, but I haven't yet."  
  
'Why?" He didn't know what to think, so he didn't even try.  
  
"Because I know that if we get back together, we'll get married," Chloe laughed a little hysterically. "It's what everyone wants, you know – his parents, my dad, even Lana and Pete, now that they're engaged."  
  
"Is that what you want?" Lex held is breath.  
  
"I thought so . . . until I saw you, and I realized that if you made my heart pound in a way Clark never could, there must be something wrong." She looked up at him, and Lex felt his own heart quicken its pace. Then she looked down, her eyes shadowed by a fringe of blonde lashes. "And if I enjoyed kissing you more than Clark, there must be something very wrong."  
  
"Indeed," he chuckled, then bent to kiss her, softly. No frantic groping like the night before, Lex took his time.  
  
"Mmm," she pulled back for a moment. "You think Clark'll ever forgive us?"  
  
"If he loves you as much as he claims, he will."  
  
Chloe giggled, startling as ever in the stark apartment.  
  
"That was a bit inappropriate," Lex admonished gently, but he could understand where she was coming from. They were in a bit of a quandary when it came to Clark, but they'd deal with it when it came.  
  
"Absolutely inappropriate," Chloe nodded seriously, her smile lingering in her eyes. "You don't want to marry me, do you Lex?"  
  
"Well, not if you object," Lex said. "But I will settle for plenty of sex and a standing Saturday night date."  
  
"And if I didn't object, would you?"  
  
"In a heartbeat." And he would.  
  
"Maybe later, k?" She grinned, and Lex wondered what she was thinking. He was curious as to what he was getting into. It struck him that he didn't really know Chloe very well at all.  
  
"So, how 'bout lunch?" Well, he'd have all day to find her out.  
  
~END~ 


End file.
